Compare Prices on Celebrity Reflection Eastern Caribbean Cruises

Celebrity Reflection - TRIP REPORT, Nov 2013

Bottom line: I strongly recommend this ship and perhaps others in same "Soltice" class. Here are some of our opinions, in no particular order.

1. The library, game and quiet rooms are MUCH too noisy. The sound from the band (playing on the lowest floor near elevators) travels all the way up to 15th floor. These rooms are located on 8th thru 10th floor and one wall of each room is all glass that overlooks the band. MUCH too noisy.

2. In pool area, the workers remove pool towels from chairs on regular basis. If you think you are "reserving" a chair and never showing up, forget it. My ipad and electronics of many others was left on display as I had left my towel covering it while I was in Jacuzzi. While I think this is a great way to share the chairs, its a bit of a surprise to see all these electronics on display.

3. Storage in the state rooms is not a traditional closet. You need to put More
luggage under bed and use all the bins you can find.

4. The rear third of top deck is a grass turf. It is setup for folks to rent a butler and sit in a small cabana while being pampered. WHAT A WASTE !!!! Very few folks used it. This is a very inefficient use of prime real estate.

5. Jogging track is nowhere near symmetrical or practical. Based on the layout, I doubt they expected anyone to actually use it.

6. Good luck trying to find a quiet place to read on the top deck. The very front of ship affords such a nice area to enjoy quiet area but they put a basketball court right in the center. The sound of the balls bouncing really spoils the otherwise peaceful area.

7. All along the top decks are glass panels, mounted to railing, that block wind. These extend around 2 feet above railing thus you must always look thru them. As there are 3 or 4 inch gaps between panels, the wind comes right thru. I suppose without them it would be much windier but ???

8. The bathroom, in our class "1c" stateroom is very large; perhaps bigger than needed. The shower is really big for a cruise ship. It is very modern and really first class.

9. One in our group had a special needs room due to wheelchair. The room they got had a standard doorway that would not accommodate the chair !!! She had to get out and walk thru the doorway. The large room, where we watched shows, had plenty of wheelchair seats.

10. In room water bottles (1 liter) were $5 each. Between the 2 of us, we averaged 3 bottles per day. We did not benefit from water package as the 2 or 3 cups of coffee we got, plus this water, did not add up anywhere near the cost of package. It would have been much easier to have room service keep water stocked and avoid us waiting for an available bartender. NOTE: The room staff cannot supply water to your room if your on a package; only if you pay for each water can they supply.

11. Music by the pool was clearly intended for folks in 20 and 30's. Not for us. Much too loud. I think this is standard on all cruise ships.

12. Bands have long been my frustration with cruises. NONE of them cater to the crowd and simply play their planned sets and stop. Ex: If they play a song that gets folks dancing, the don't continue to play songs that keep folks dancing. They will play what THEY want and watch as folks stop dancing. I simply don't understand this. Places we goto locally seem to adapt to mood of the crowd and react; so I know its possible so why not on the ship ?????

13. Bartenders are VERY overworked. We had the water/coffee package and had to goto a bar to get served. We could request from waiter but we were on the go too much to wait around for service. So we had to compete with endless folks that sit on barstools all day (and were we surprised how many did this, starting at breakfast!!!).

14. The "free" coffee is absolutely horrible. Its akin to a 1/4 cup of dunkin donuts coffee added into 3/4 cup of water. If you want a nice coffee, you either travel on Carnival ships or get the package on Celebrity.

15. I took the spin classes on all sea days. The room they have the bikes in is truly an afterthought. Circulation is horrible. They do require you to use shoes with clips (NOT the SPD type) and they provide the shoes!!! The computer setup in the room is top notch! Instructors were excellent !

16. Spa is top notch. Clearly they made this a high priority when designing ship.

17. Boarding was VERY efficient. We arrived at port around 10:30am and finished registration before 11. Due to ship arriving from overseas, it required some additional paperwork onboard before anyone could board. We were advised of this days in advance (via email) so there were no surprises. They really do a great job with boarding.